1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a method to control a printer or copier, in that marking data for toner markings for a character generator are stored in an image control, and in that the character generator generates in an intermediate carrier a latent image corresponding to the marking data that is inked with toner material in the further course, whereby toner marks are generated on the intermediate carrier. Furthermore, the invention concerns a device to implement this method.
Furthermore, the invention concerns a method to control a printer or copier using an optical reflex sensor, as well as a device for this.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to print a print image on a print medium (for example paper) with consistent inking, a permanent monitoring and regulation of the electrophotographic or electromagnetic processes is necessary. For this monitoring and regulation, different toner marks adapted to the respective processes are applied to the intermediate carrier (that is, for example, an organic photoconductor band, also called an OPC band (OPC organic photoconductor)) or to a transfer band; these toner marks are scanned with the aid of sensors and the results used to control the print process. For example, the blackening of the toner mark can be measured with the aid of a reflex sensor. Another possibility is to detect the toner layer thickness with the aid of a capacitive layer thickness sensor. Another method utilizes the electric toner charge, whereby the charge potential is measured with the aid of a potential sensor. The problem exists in these procedures to apply different markings to the intermediate carrier independent of the print image to be printed and independent of a temporal control, and to synchronize these toner markings with the evaluation by the sensor or sensors.